Worthless idols.

1 Samuel 12:12-25 (New Living Translation)

12 “But when you were afraid of Nahash, the king of Ammon, you came to me and said that you wanted a king to reign over you, even though the Lord your God was already your king. 13 All right, here is the king you have chosen. You asked for him, and the Lord has granted your request.

14 “Now if you fear and worship the Lord and listen to his voice, and if you do not rebel against the Lord’s commands, then both you and your king will show that you recognize the Lord as your God. 15 But if you rebel against the Lord’s commands and refuse to listen to him, then his hand will be as heavy upon you as it was upon your ancestors.

16 “Now stand here and see the great thing the Lord is about to do. 17 You know that it does not rain at this time of the year during the wheat harvest. I will ask the Lord to send thunder and rain today. Then you will realize how wicked you have been in asking the Lord for a king!”

18 So Samuel called to the Lord, and the Lord sent thunder and rain that day. And all the people were terrified of the Lord and of Samuel. 19 “Pray to the Lord your God for us, or we will die!” they all said to Samuel. “For now we have added to our sins by asking for a king.”

20 “Don’t be afraid,” Samuel reassured them. “You have certainly done wrong, but make sure now that you worship the Lord with all your heart, and don’t turn your back on him. 21 Don’t go back to worshiping worthless idols that cannot help or rescue you—they are totally useless! 22The Lord will not abandon his people, because that would dishonor his great name. For it has pleased the Lord to make you his very own people.

23 “As for me, I will certainly not sin against the Lord by ending my prayers for you. And I will continue to teach you what is good and right. 24But be sure to fear the Lord and faithfully serve him. Think of all the wonderful things he has done for you.25 But if you continue to sin, you and your king will be swept away.”

“…And do not turn aside after empty thingsthat cannot profit or deliver, for they are empty” – 1 Samuel 12:21 (ESV version)

“Do not turn away after useless idols. They can do you no good, nor can they rescue you, because they are useless.” (NIV version)

I was reading through 1 Samuel 12 today as my quiet time and God pierced my heart with this passage, specifically these underlined verses. I was just reminded that I can’t hide anything from Him. He demands my heart and He wants ALL of it. He’s such a jealous God and as I seek after “worthless idols” not only will He not tolerate it, I find that my pursuit of them only leaves my heart feeling empty and unsatisfied. It takes me to a place where I want more…I want better…I want something that fills and fully satisfies…I want the kind of satisfaction of having something that delivers. It takes me to a place where I recognize that I need rescuing and what my heart truly needs is Him. Forgive us, God for being foolish and no different than the Israelites in chasing after empty, worthless idols when You offer us so much more….